knife

Chapter 717 Ten Days Later
(An elder has passed away. I will be attending the funeral and keeping vigil starting tonight, and the burial will be tomorrow, so there will be no updates tomorrow. Sorry.)
The boiling water was lifted from the fire and poured into a small blue-and-white porcelain bowl in front of me. Some kudzu root powder harvested in autumn was added to the bowl. Then, I vigorously stirred it with chopsticks. Soon, the powder in the bowl turned into a crystal clear jelly-like substance. I then picked up the frosting sugar from the small bottle next to me, shook some into it, stirred it for a while, and then slurped it into my mouth with the chopsticks. It was just right!
"Delicious and nutritious, wouldn't you like some?" Li Dachui asked with a smile, looking at Lu Xin who was roasting a fat chicken across from him.

"I prefer meat!" Lu Xin held up the golden-brown, sizzling roasted chicken in his hand. "Li Duhu, give me a copy of your barbecue seasoning recipe later!"

"Sure, ten thousand taels!"

"What?"

"Ten thousand taels, and I'll sell you the recipe!" Li Dachui said with a smile as he ate the kudzu root powder. "It tastes much better than bird's nest. I really can't understand what's so delicious about swallow saliva! Xiaoman, prepare more of this kudzu root powder for me later."

Lu Xin laughed angrily: "You really dare to say that."

"What's there to be afraid of? This recipe is unique in the world!" Li Dachui said proudly. "Don't you understand that things are valued for their rarity?"

"If you can't get up, then don't eat!" Lu Xin snorted. "Li Duhu, are you really going to accept Cui Shu?"

"Why not?" Li Dachui glanced at Lu Xin: "Your father killed my mother, but I still became your friend, didn't I?"

"How dare you compare me to him!" Lu Xin roared. "My father paid for your mother's life on the spot, and we've known each other for over a decade. This Cui Shu dared to kill even his own father. How can someone like that be a friend—disloyal, unfilial, and unjust?"

"An ally, not a friend!" Li Dachui stuck out his big tongue and licked the blue and white porcelain bowl clean.

"Look at you!" Lu Xin said disdainfully. "You look like a starving ghost reincarnated."

“I’m not like you, who’s lived a life of luxury since childhood!” Li Dachui snorted. “When I was struggling to survive in the wilderness, catching a mouse was like a holiday!”

"Old Zhou is just tormenting you. It's a classic case of forcing yourself to endure something you're not suffering from!" Lu Xin said. "Xiaoman, don't you think so?"

Gu Xiaoman walked over with a smile, sat on the small stool between the two, took the roast chicken from Lu Xin, placed it on a tray at his feet, took out a small knife, and with a few quick slashes, removed the entire chicken skeleton. The chicken meat was then sliced ​​into evenly sized thin slices, which were neatly arranged on the plate. He then turned around and took a dipping sauce from behind him, saying with a smile, "Patriarch Lu, if you buy the young master's barbecue recipe for ten thousand taels, this dipping sauce is free!"

"Brother Xiaoman, you're really extravagant! You can sell this for money!" Li Dachui said discontentedly. "You won't meet many people as generous as Patriarch Lu in your lifetime, and you won't be able to do this kind of business many times!"

"So I'm just destined to be ripped off!" Lu Xin said irritably, picking up a piece of meat, dipping it in sauce, and stuffing it into his mouth to chew. "Guardian Li, I just don't like that kid!"

Li Dachui poked at the fire with fire tongs, ignoring Lu Xin, and turned to Xiaoman, asking, "How are the troops on the plains preparing?"

"Young Master, the last battle was easy. We fielded our original five thousand men with virtually no losses. However, several of them were injured in the recent snowstorms!" Gu Xiaoman said with a smile. "We can set off in a day. Cui Peng, the patriarch of the Cui family, will be in charge of coordinating with us. He will arrange for us to ambush at the designated locations." Li Dachui said to Gu Xiaoman, "The most important part of this operation is not the final battle, but the secrecy during the march and the ambush."

"Are you really that confident? Aren't you afraid that Cui Shu might go back on her word?"

“He has no other way to go!” Li Dachui said, “The path I gave him, once he steps on it, he can only keep going forward. If he hesitates even for a moment, he may be crushed to pieces. Old Lu, from this point of view, Cui Shu’s loyalty to me in the future will probably be even higher than yours.”

Lu Xin snorted but did not refute.

If Cui Shu doesn't want to be tormented like Kou Zhong for the rest of his life, he must cooperate with Li Dachui to complete the encirclement and suppression of Li Guohua. Once he does this, he will directly stand against the powerful families in the Central Plains. In addition, Cui Cheng is still eyeing Dongdu covetously, and Li Dachui has the big handle of patricide in his hands. In this life, if he doesn't cling to Li Dachui's leg, he may be killed at any time.

So Li Dachui was right when he said that Cui Shu's loyalty would be higher than his own in the future.

After all, I want to be a human being.

From now on, Cui Shu can only be Li Dachui's dog.

"Fanyang has gathered 10,000 men, all of them cavalry!" Lu Xin said. "Of course, they can't compare to your cavalry. Among them, there are only 3,000 genuine cavalry. In order to get these men to their destination as quickly as possible, I have gathered all the mules and horses that can be collected within the territory."

"Ten days from now, Cui Ming will be buried, and Li Guohua and his men will definitely be there!" Li Dachui said. "He won't let go of such a good opportunity to force the Cui family to submit. However, this guy is always cautious, and he will definitely bring his army. The real challenge of this battle is at the Cui family's old residence; the situation in Boling County is much easier!"

"Xiaoman, are five thousand people here enough? Isn't your wife bringing people to help you?"

"In the battle of Volcano Fortress, Ningyu will lead a large army to attack Boling County City with you, cutting off Li Guohua's retreat. Anxuan will lead a group of old houses to help me!" Li Dachui laughed, "Anyway, Li Guohua is a sitting duck this time. In the struggle for Boling County, Linghu Zhishu died first. If we kill Li Guohua as well, hehe, it will be like breaking two of Linghu Ye's arms!"

“These two are Linghu Ye’s most trusted men, especially Li Guohua, who can be considered the number two figure in Linghu Ye’s group. Killing him will definitely shake Linghu Ye’s group!” Lu Xin said, “It’s no exaggeration to say that people are in a state of panic. In this way, when the army from outside the pass actually enters the pass to fight, they may be able to sweep through the enemy with ease and pacify the region with a single proclamation!”

"That's for the best!" Li Dachui laughed. "But such people are never easy to kill, and Li Guohua is the most mysterious of all. Zhi Qiu Academy has tried everything but still couldn't figure out what level of cultivation he has. They even suspected that he didn't know anything about martial arts at all. Because in all these years, they've never seen him make a move!"

"I don't know either!" Lu Xin said, "Anyway, it's always good to be prepared for the worst. This guy is no pushover. Even if he doesn't know martial arts, we can't underestimate him."

"Of course!" Li Dachui nodded and said, "My greatest strength is that I never underestimate anyone. Even if I'm facing a rabbit, I will give it my all."

(End of this chapter)